Power folding stroller having manual override system

ABSTRACT

A stroller includes: a first stroller component; a second stroller component comprising a child receiving portion; a drive mechanism operatively engaged with at least one of the first and second stroller components to move the at least one of the first and second stroller components from a first position to a second position; and an object sensor operably coupled to the child receiving portion. The object sensor provides a signal that prevents movement of the first and second stroller components from the first position to the second position if the object sensor detects the presence of an object in the child receiving portion.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.12/032,370, which claims priority pursuant to 35 U.S.C. §119(e) to U.S.Provisional Application Nos. 60/890,597, filed Feb. 19, 2007;60/890,601, filed Feb. 19, 2007; 60/890,605, filed Feb. 19, 2007;60/890,607, filed Feb. 19, 2007; 60/890,608, filed Feb. 19, 2007;60/890,613, filed Feb. 19, 2007; 60/890,616, filed Feb. 19, 2007;60/890,618, filed Feb. 19, 2007; 60/890,619, filed Feb. 19, 2007; and60/890,624, filed Feb. 20, 2007, which are all incorporated herein byreference in their entirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates generally to strollers, and moreparticularly pertains to baby strollers having one or more componentswhich can be moved by a drive mechanism such as foldable baby strollerswhich may be moved between collapsed and operative positionsautomatically with little effort.

2. Description of Related Art

Baby strollers, also referred to as baby carriages, baby buggies orprams, have been used to hold and transport babies and young childrenfor many years. Early baby strollers had parts which were fixedlysecured to one another such that they did not fold for compactness. Morerecently, baby strollers have been designed to have some parts which aremovable relative to one another to allow movement of some parts of thestroller to achieve a more compact configuration when not in use.However, current strollers do not allow for movement or folding to ascompact of a configuration as desired, and are cumbersome and sometimesdifficult to move between their collapsed (closed) position and theiropen (operative) positions, particularly when attending to a baby orchild. A stroller which is easier to move between its collapsed andoperative positions is desired.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In accordance with the present invention, various advantageous strollersare provided which allow one or more of their components to be movedeasily and quickly between two or more positions. Described embodimentsinclude a stroller with one or more first wheels, one or more firstwheel support structures for supporting the one or more first wheelswhich are moveable from a collapsed position to an open position, withthe stroller also having one or more second wheels, one or more secondwheel support structures for supporting the one or more second wheelsmoveable from a collapsed to an open position, and one or more drivemechanisms operatively engaged with at least one of the one or morefirst wheel support structures and at least one of the one or moresecond wheel support structures to move the at least one of the one ormore first wheel support structures from its collapsed to its openposition, and the at least one of the one or more second wheel supportstructures from its collapsed to its open position.

In another described embodiment, a stroller is provided having aplurality of support members operatively connected with one another todefine a linkage having one degree of freedom, with at least one of thesupport members engaging a wheel and being moveable between a collapsedposition and an operative position, and having a drive operativelyengaged with at least one of the plurality of support members, such thateach of said plurality of support members are moveable between saidcollapsed and open positions by the drive, and having a control switchfor actuation of the drive.

In another described embodiment, a stroller is provided having a guiderail having a longitudinal axis, one or more front wheels, a front wheelsupport structure for supporting the front one or more wheels, the frontwheel support structure engaged with the guide rail for movement alongthe longitudinal axis of the guide rail, one or more rear wheels, and arear wheel support structure for supporting the rear one or more wheels,with the rear wheel support structure engaged to the guide rail formovement along the guide rail longitudinal axis.

In another described embodiment, a stroller is provided having a firststroller component and a second stroller component, with at least one ofthe first and second stroller components being movable from a firstposition to a second position, and with a drive mechanism operativelyengaged with the at least one of the first and second strollercomponents to move the at least one of the first and second strollercomponents from its first position to its second position, and a controlswitch operatively engaged with the drive mechanism to actuate the drivemechanism.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For the purpose of facilitating understanding of the invention, theaccompanying drawings and description illustrate preferred embodimentsthereof, from which the invention, various embodiments of itsstructures, construction and method of operation, and many advantagesmay be understood and appreciated.

FIG. 1 is an isometric view of stroller embodying various features ofthe present invention, with the illustrated stroller shown in its openposition;

FIG. 2 is a bottom view of the stroller of FIG. 1 shown in its openposition;

FIG. 3 is a side view of the stroller of FIG. 1 shown in its openposition;

FIG. 4 is an isometric view of the stroller of FIG. 1 shown in itspartially open position;

FIG. 5 is a bottom view of the stroller of FIG. 1 shown in its partiallyopen position;

FIG. 6 is a side view of the stroller of FIG. 1 shown in its partiallyopen position;

FIG. 7 is an isometric view of the stroller of FIG. 1 shown in its fullyclosed position;

FIG. 8 is a bottom view of the stroller of FIG. 1 shown in its fullyclosed position;

FIG. 9 is a side view of the stroller of FIG. 1 shown in its fullyclosed position;

FIG. 10 is a top view of the stroller of FIG. 1 shown in its fullyclosed position;

FIG. 11 is a schematic isometric view illustrating the drive mechanismof the stroller of FIG. 1;

FIG. 12 is a side schematic view of the drive mechanism of FIG. 11;

FIG. 13 is a bottom view illustrating of the drive mechanism of FIG. 12;

FIG. 14 is a partial side schematic view of the linkage of the handlebar of the stroller of FIG. 1 shown in its fully open position;

FIG. 14A is an enlarged view of a latching mechanism;

FIG. 15 is a partial side schematic view of the linkage of FIG. 14 shownin its partially closed position;

FIG. 16 is a partial side schematic view of the linkage of FIG. 14 shownin its fully closed position;

FIG. 17 is an isometric schematic view of a stroller embodying variousfeatures of the present invention, shown in its fully open position;

FIG. 18 a side view of the stroller of FIG. 17 shown in its fully openposition;

FIG. 19 is a side view of the stroller of FIG. 17 shown in its partiallyopen position;

FIG. 20 is a side view of the stroller of FIG. 17 shown in its fullyclosed position;

FIG. 21 is a schematic partial view of a latch and latch releasemechanism of the stroller of FIG. 17 illustrating various features ofthe present invention; and

FIG. 22 is a partial isometric schematic view of the preferred latchrelease mechanism of the stroller of FIG. 17;

FIG. 23 is a partial isometric schematic view of the preferred latchdrive mechanism of the stroller of FIG. 17;

FIG. 24 is a partial isometric view of a stroller embodying variousfeatures of the present invention, shown in its fully open position;

FIG. 25A is a partial enlarged view of a handle bar linkage forinterconnecting lateral handle bar components in the stroller of FIG. 1,with the handle bar linkage shown in its fully open position; and

FIG. 25B is a partial enlarged view of the handle bar linkage of FIG.25A, shown in a partially closed position.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PRESENT INVENTION

The following description is provided to enable those skilled in the artto make and use the described embodiments set forth in the best modescontemplated for carrying out the invention. Various modifications,equivalents, variations, and alternatives, however, will remain readilyapparent to those skilled in the art. Any and all such modifications,variations, equivalents, and alternatives are intended to fall withinthe sprit and scope of the present invention.

A stroller embodying various aspects of the present invention is shownin FIGS. 1 through 16. It will be readily apparent to those skilled inthe art, however, that the stroller of FIGS. 1 through 16 represents butone of a wide variety of structures, configurations and modes ofoperation of strollers which fall within the scope of the presentinvention.

With reference to FIGS. 1-4 a stroller 10 is illustrated which comprisesa pair of front wheels 12 having a front wheel support structure 14 forsupporting the front wheels 12. The front wheel support structure 14 isslidably engaged with a guide rail 16 for sliding movement of the frontcollar portion 26 of the front wheel support structure 14 along thelongitudinal axis 18 (see FIGS. 11-13) of the guide rail 16. The frontwheel support structure 14 has members 20, 20 a, 22, 24 and 26 which aremovable between an open position (see FIGS. 1-4) and a collapsedposition (see FIGS. 7-10) upon movement of the front collar 26 of thefront wheel support structure 14 along the longitudinal axis 18 of theguide rail 16.

More specifically, the illustrated front wheel support structure 14comprises a pair of generally U-shaped wheel receiving members 20 forreceiving respective wheels 12, and axles 20 a to allow the wheels 12 toroll about their respective axles 20 a. The front wheel receivingmembers 20 are pivotally connected to a first end 22 a of front wheelconnector 22 to allow the wheels 12 to pivot about respective axessubstantially parallel to their axes 20 a to accommodate changes in therolling direction of the front of the stroller. The second end 22 b ofthe front wheel connector 22 is pivotally connected to the front collar26. Struts 24 are pivotally connected at a first end 24 a to the frontwheel connector 22, and the struts 24 are pivotally connected at asecond end 24 b to the front abutment plate 29.

Accordingly, the front wheel connector 22, strut 24 and front collar 26form a linkage whereby the front wheels 12 and their associated frontwheel support structure 14 are movable between their collapsed positions(FIGS. 7-10) and their open positions (FIGS. 1-4) upon movement of thefront collar 26 along the longitudinal axis 18 of the guide rail 16. Afront abutment plate 29 is fixedly connected to the front end 16 a ofthe guide rail 16 and receives the front wheel connectors 22 when thefront wheel support structure 14 is in its fully open position, suchthat when the stroller 10 is in its fully open position the front wheelmembers 22 are secured between the front abutment member 29 and thefront wheel connector securing portion 28 of the front collar 26 asshown in FIG. 1. A pair of seat support arms 94 are provided to supporta seat (not shown).

With continued reference to FIGS. 1-4 the stroller 10 further comprisesa pair of rear wheels 30 having a rear wheel support structure 32 forsupporting the rear wheels 30. The rear wheel support structure 32 isslidably engaged with the guide rail 16 for sliding movement of the rearcollar portion 34 of the rear wheel support structure 32 along thelongitudinal axis 18 of the guide rail 16. The rear wheel supportstructure 32 has members 34, 36, 38 and 40 which are movable between anopen position (see FIGS. 1-4) and a collapsed position (see FIGS. 7-10)upon movement of the rear collar 34 of the rear wheel support structure32 along the longitudinal axis 18 of the guide rail 16.

More specifically, the rear wheel support structure 32 of stroller 10comprises a rear axle supporting member 36 at each of the rear wheels 30for supporting the respective axles 31 of the rear wheels 30 to allowthe rear wheels 30 to roll about their respective axles 31. The rearaxle support members 36 preferably each have a braking mechanism of thetype well known in the art for selectively locking the rear wheels toprevent inadvertent rolling movement of the stroller when the brakingmechanism is locked. The rear axle support members 36 are fixedlyconnected to the rear ends 40 a of the rear legs 40, with the front ends40 b of the rear legs 40 pivotally connected to the central collar 42which is attached in a fixed position to the guide rail 16. The guiderail may be configured to define a suitable mounting position for thecentral collar 42, and to maintain the central collar 42 at a suitablelongitudinal position along the guide rail 16. The rear ends 40 a of therear legs 40 are pivotally connected to the lower ends 38 a of the rearwheel connectors 38 through brackets 44, with the upper ends 38 b of therear wheel connectors 38 pivotally connected to the rear member securingportion 46 of the rear collar 34. Accordingly, the rear wheel connector38, rear leg 40 and rear collar 34 form a linkage whereby the rearwheels 30 and their associated rear wheel support structure 32 aremovable between their collapsed positions (FIGS. 7-10) and their openpositions (FIGS. 1-4) upon movement of the rear collar 34 along thelongitudinal axis 18 of the guide rail 16.

The rear member securing portion 46 of the rear collar 34 has a pair ofrecesses for receiving the upper ends 38 b of the rear wheel connectors38, and a rear abutment member 48 is fixedly connected to the rear end16 b of the guide rail 16 such that when the stroller 10 is in its fullyopen position the upper ends 38 b of the rear wheel connectors 38 aresecured between the rear abutment member 48 and the rear member securingportion 46 of the rear collar 34.

A generally U-shaped frame member comprised of two separate lateralframe components 50 is pivotally connected to the front end 16 a of theguide rail 16 through a frame mounting portion 52 of the front abutmentmember 29, to allow each of the lateral frame components 50 to pivot orrotate relative to the front abutment member 29. A pair of arcuate framesupporting members 54 each have a lower end 54 b pivotally connected tothe rear member securing portion 46 of the rear collar 34 and an upperend 54 a pivotally connected to a respective upper end 50 a of the twolateral frame members 50. The rear member securing portion 46 of therear collar 34 has a pair of recesses for receiving the respective lowerends 54 b of the frame supporting members 54 when the rear collar 34 isin its fully open position. Hence, when the rear collar 34 is in itsfully open position the lower ends 54 b of the frame supporting members54 are secured between the rear member securing portion 46 of the rearcollar 34 and the rear abutment member 48.

As best seen in FIGS. 1, 10, 25A and 25B, a generally U-shaped handlebar is provided comprised of two lateral handle bar components 56 havinglower ends 56 a pivotally connected to respective upper ends 50 a of theframe member. Adjacent the upper end 56 b of one of the lateral handlebar components 56 an elongated slot 57 is provided, and adjacent theupper end 56 b of the other lateral handle bar component 56 a suitablepin 59 is provided which is slidably received and retained within theslot 57 of the other lateral handle bar component 56. This slidablelinkage allows the upper ends 56 b of the lateral handle bar components56 to move toward and away from one another (as seen in comparing FIGS.25A and 25B) as the lateral handle bar components 56 pivot between theircollapsed and open positions. This allows the overall width of thegenerally U-shaped handle bar to decrease (consistent with the decreasein the lateral width of the wheels) as the lateral handle bar components56 move from their open position as shown in FIG. 1 to their collapsedpositions shown in FIG. 10 wherein a portion of the upper ends 56 b ofthe lateral handle bar components 56 overlap one another to provide acompact configuration. As best seen in FIGS. 25A and 25B, the handlebars have an inclined portion adjacent their ends at the area in whichthe upper end portions of the handle bar members overlap to facilitatesliding and overlapping movement of the end portions without requiringpivotal movement of either of the lateral handle bar members.Accordingly, the two lateral handle bar components 56 act as a singlegenerally U-shaped handlebar when the two lateral handle bar components56 are in their open positions as in FIG. 1 at which they function as asingle handle bar unit due to the pin-in-slot linkage maintaining theupper ends 56 b of the two lateral handle bar components 56 connectedtogether.

In accordance with an aspect of the invention, two lateral handle barcomponents which are not permanently interconnected at their upper endsmay be utilized. It may be desirable to provide a handle bar latchmechanism (not shown) which engages the upper ends 56 b of the twolateral handle bar components 56 to retain them interconnected when thehandle bar components 56 are in their open position, but which allowsrelease of the two lateral handle bar components 56 to allow them tomove independently of one another when not in their open position. Therelease of the handle bar latch mechanism may be automated so that thelatch mechanism releases or unlatches upon actuation of a control switchor a controller. The stroller may be constructed such that release ofthe handle bar latch mechanism, either manually or automatically, mayactuate automatic movement of one or more additional stroller componentsas suitable.

With reference now to FIGS. 1 and 14-16, each of the two lateral handlebar components 56 and the frame supporting members 54 are pivotallyconnected to the upper ends 50 a of the frame member. More specifically,the frame supporting member 54 has a frame gear member 58 fixed theretosuch that upon pivoting movement of the frame supporting members 54relative to the frame member 50 about pivot pin 60 the frame gear member58 pivots about pivot pin 60 in the same rotational direction. The ends56 a of the handle bar 56 have handle bar gear members 62 fixed theretoand in engagement with the frame gear member 58 such that upon pivotalmovement of the frame supporting members 54 relative to the frame member50 the handle bar components 56 are pivoted relative to the frame member50. This defines a simultaneous folding and unfolding gear arrangementreferred to generally at 51.

More specifically, upon movement of the frame supporting members 54 fromtheir fully opened position of FIG. 14 to their partially open positionof FIG. 15, the frame gear member 58 pivots about pivot pin 60 whichrotates the handle bar gear member 62 which pivots both of the handlebar components 56 forward from the open position of FIG. 14 to thepartially open position of FIG. 15. The gears and handle bar componentsare configured such that upon movement of the frame supporting members54 to their fully collapsed positions relative to the frame members 50as shown in FIG. 16, the handle bar components 56 are moved to theirfully collapsed positions as shown in FIG. 16. Similarly, upon movementof the frame supporting members 54 from their fully collapsed positionof FIG. 16 toward their fully open position of FIG. 14, the handle barcomponents 56 are moved through the gear arrangement toward its fullyopen position as well.

Although the illustrated and described gear arrangement 51 may be usedto achieve the desired movement of the handle bar 56 to its fullycollapsed position upon movement of the frame supporting members 54 totheir fully collapsed position, and to achieve the desired movement ofthe handle bar 56 to its fully open position upon movement of the framesupporting members 54 to their fully open position, a variety of otherarrangements may be used in addition to, or instead of, gears forachieving this, such as mechanical linkages, a drive mechanism inoperative engagement with the handle bars, cable connections,pneumatics, and others. The handle bar gear member 62 resides within agear housing 64, and frame gear member 58 resides within frame gearmember enclosure 66 which also accommodates a portion of the gearhousing therein, so the frame gear member 58 and handle bar gear member62 are covered at all times throughout collapsing, opening and use ofthe stroller.

With reference to FIG. 14A, the above described gear arrangement 51 canbe modified to provide a latching mechanism suitable for use inconnection with inventive aspects of strollers of the present invention.A latch member 67 is provided at the end 56 b of the lateral handle barcomponent 56 which is spring biased to its extended position extendingoutwardly from the end 56 b, as shown in FIG. 14A. The latch member 67is movable to a retracted position not extending outwardly from the end56 b. A recess 69 for receiving the latch member 67 when it is in itsextended position is provided in the gear housing 64 to receive andengage the latch member 67 therein, and thereby engage the handle barmember 56. Due to the single degree of freedom of the stroller linkage,this prevents the stroller from being moved toward its collapsed orfolded position. The latch member 67 can be released from the recess 69by moving the latch to its retracted position to disengage the latchmember 67 and thereby disengage the handle bar member 56 to allowrotational movement of the handle bar member and accordingly allowmovement of the stroller toward its collapsed position. An arcuate slot71 is provided in the gear housing 64 which slidably receives andretains a pin or rivet 73 on the frame member 50 to limit the extent ofpivotal movement of the frame member 50 relative to the handle barcomponent 56 to provide alignment of the recess 69 with the latch member67 to assure the latch member is properly received and engaged in therecess 69 when the stroller is in its open position and the latch member67 is spring biased into the recess 69. The end 56 b is arcuate tocorrespond to the arcuate or circular perimeter of the gear housing 64,whereby after the latch has been disengaged and the stroller has beenmoved to its collapsed position, upon movement of the stroller towardits open position the latch member 67 is spring biased against thearcuate perimeter of the gear housing 64 until the stroller is fullyopen, at which point the latch member 67 is aligned with, and springbiased into, the recess 69 to prevent movement of the stroller towardits collapsed position until the latch member 67 is retracted.

With reference now to FIGS. 11-13, the stroller 10 has a drive mechanism70 through which the stroller 10 may be moved back and forth between itsopen and collapsed positions. A rear threaded member 72 is mounted inthe guide rail 16 for rotation within the guide rail interior about thelongitudinal axis of the rear threaded member, with the longitudinalaxis of the rear threaded member being coaxial with the longitudinalaxis 18 of the guide rail. The rear threaded member 72 is supported bybearings 74 a and 74 b at each end thereof, and a threaded member pulley76 is fixedly connected to the rear threaded member 72. It is preferredthat the threaded member pulley 76 is mounted in close proximity to thebearing 74 b, so that lateral forces exerted on the threaded memberpulley 76 are taken upon by the bearing 74 b such that separate bearingsare not required for the front threaded member 86 which is discussedbelow. A motor 78 is mounted in a fixed position on the guide rail andhas a drive pulley 80 connected to its shaft and a belt (not shown)extends between the drive pulley 80 and threaded member pulley 76through which the threaded member pulley 76 is rotated about itslongitudinal axis upon actuation of the motor 78. A rear nut member 82is in threaded engagement with the rear threaded member 72, with therear nut member 82 having a mounting portion 82 a which extendsoutwardly of the guide rail 16 through the longitudinally extending slot84 in the guide rail 16.

Accordingly, as the motor 78 is actuated, the motor 78 effects rotationof the rear threaded member 72 through the belt and pulleys (with thelateral forces exerted on the threaded member pulley 76 by the beltbeing taken up by the bearings 74 a and 74 b) whereby the nut member 82(which is prevented from rotating together with the rear threaded member72 due to the mounting portion 82 a of the rear nut member 82 extendingoutwardly of the slot 84 and bearing against the sides of the slot whenthe rear threaded member 72 rotates) is driven longitudinally along therear threaded member 72. The rear collar 34 is mounted to the mountingportion 82 a of the rear nut member 82 such that the rear collar 34 andthe rear member securing portion 46 connected thereto moveslongitudinally along the guide rail 16 together with the rear nut member82 as the rear threaded member 72 is rotated by the motor 78. With therear wheel support structure 32 engaged with the rear collar 34, thelongitudinal movement of the rear collar 72 along the guide rail 16thereby effects movement of the rear wheel support structure 32 betweenits collapsed and open positions, with the rear collar 34 moving in afirst longitudinal direction along the guide rail 16 upon rotation ofthe rear threaded member 72 in first rotational direction, and the rearcollar 34 moving in a second longitudinal direction along the guide rail16 upon rotation of the rear threaded member 72 in an opposition, secondrotational direction to move the rear wheel support structure betweenits collapsed and open positions. Hence, the drive mechanism 70 isoperatively engaged with the rear wheel support structure 32 to move therear wheels 30 between their collapsed and open positions.

With continued reference to FIGS. 11-13, a front threaded member 86 ismounted in the guide rail 16 for rotation within the guide rail interiorabout the longitudinal axis of the front threaded member, with thelongitudinal axis of the front threaded member being coaxial with thelongitudinal axis 18 of the guide rail 16 in a manner similar to therear threaded member 72. The rear end 86 a of the front threaded member86 is coupled to the rear threaded member 72 through coupling member 88such that the front threaded member 86 and the rear threaded member 72rotate together. The front end 86 b of the front threaded member 86 issupported in a suitable recess in the rear side of the front abutmentmember which allows rotation of the front threaded member 86 about itslongitudinal axis, which is coaxial with the longitudinal axis of therear threaded member 72.

A front nut member 90 is in threaded engagement with the front threadedmember 86, with the front nut member 82 having a mounting portion 90 awhich extends outwardly of the guide rail 16 through the longitudinallyextending slot 84 in the guide rail 16. Accordingly, as the motor 78 isactuated, the motor 78 effects rotation of the front threaded member 86(simultaneously and in the same rotational direction as the rearthreaded member 72) whereby the front nut member 90 (which is preventedfrom rotating together with the front threaded member 86 due to themounting portion 90 a of the front nut member 82 extending outwardly ofthe slot 84 and bearing against the sides of the slot when the frontthreaded member 86 rotates) is driven longitudinally along the frontthreaded member 86. The front collar 26 is mounted to the mountingportion 90 a of the front nut member 90 such that the front collar 90and the front wheel connector securing portion 28 connected theretomoves longitudinally along the guide rail 16 together with the front nutmember 90 as the front threaded member 86 is rotated by the motor 78.With the front wheel support structure 14 engaged with the front collar26, the longitudinal movement of the front collar 26 along the guiderail 16 thereby effects movement of the front wheel support structure 14between its collapsed and open positions, with the front collar 26moving in a first longitudinal direction along the guide rail 16 uponrotation of the front threaded member 86 in first rotational direction,and the front collar 90 moving in a second longitudinal direction alongthe guide rail 16 upon rotation of the front threaded member 86 in anopposition, second rotational direction to move the front wheel supportstructure 14 between its collapsed and open positions. Hence, the drivemechanism 70 is operatively engaged with the front wheel supportstructure 14 to move the front wheels 12 between their collapsed andopen positions.

As mentioned above, the front and rear threaded members 86 and 72 arecoaxial and are coupled together so that they rotate simultaneously inthe same direction. They also have opposite threads (not shown) suchthat when the front and rear threaded members 86 and 72 rotate togetherin a first rotational direction the front and rear collars 26 and 34move toward one another to move the front and rear wheel supportstructures 14 and 32 toward their collapsed positions, and when thefront and rear threaded members rotate together in a second, oppositerotational direction the front and rear collars 26 and 34 move away fromone another to move the front and rear wheel support structures 14 and32 toward their open positions. Due to differences in the linkages ofthe front and rear wheel support structures 14 and 32 of the stroller10, the threads of the front and rear threaded members 86 and 72 aredifferent from each other, such that upon the same amount of rotationalmovement of the front and rear threaded members 86 and 72 the rearcollar 34 is displaced a greater distance along the longitudinal axis 18of the guide rail 16 than the front collar 26 is displaced along thelongitudinal axis 18 of the guide rail 16 (with the simultaneousdisplacement of the front and rear collars 26 and 34 being in oppositedirections). It will be readily apparent to those skilled in the artthat a single threaded member may be provided instead of two separatethreaded members, with the single threaded member having two distinct,opposite thread portions.

Accordingly, it will be appreciated that with the coupled front and rearthreaded members being considered part of the frame, the stroller 10provides a frame, a front wheel support structure, and a rear wheelsupport structure which define a linkage having a single degree offreedom, such that movement of any one of the coupled threaded members,front wheel support structure, or rear wheel support structure 34relative to one another toward their collapsed or open positions mayeffect movement of the others toward their collapsed or open positions.By accurately controlling and/or preventing rotation of the coupledfront and rear threaded members, the movement and/or securing in placeof the front and rear wheel support structures may be achieved. Further,with the handle bars 56 operatively coupled to the frame supportingmembers 54 of the rear wheel assembly by the gear arrangement discussedabove, the coupled threaded members, front wheel support structure, rearwheel support structure and handle bars form a linkage having a singledegree of freedom, whereby by accurately controlling and/or preventingrotation of the coupled front and rear threaded members, the movementand/or securing in place of the handle bars, and the front and rearwheel support structures may be achieved.

A control switch 92 is provided, preferably in the handle bar 56 forease of access, for effecting actuation of the drive mechanism 70. Thecontrol switch 92 is operatively connected to the motor 78 (which may bethrough controller, such as a microprocessor, not shown) to controlactuation of the motor 78, which in turn controls the drive mechanism70, which in turn controls movement of the front and rear wheel supportmembers 14 and 32 between their collapsed and open positions.Preferably, the wires extending between the control switch 92 and motor78 are all disposed internally of the stroller elements, such asextending internally within hollow tubular members. The control switch92, or a separate control switch and/or a common controller, may also beoperatively coupled to one or more latch mechanisms to move the latchmechanisms from their latched positions in which they prevent thestroller from moving from its fully open position toward its collapsedposition, to their unlatched positions in which they allow the strollerto move from its fully open position towards its collapsed position. Themotor 78, or a separate drive, may be operatively connected to a controlswitch and/or controller to effect automatic movement of the latchesupon actuation by the control switch 94. The unlatching of the one ormore latches is preferably carried out prior to, or simultaneous withthe initiation actuation of the motor 78 and drive mechanism 70 of whichthe motor may be a part.

In accordance with an aspect of the invention, a control switch may beprovided at or in proximity with one or more latches on the stroller (oroperatively engaged with one or more latches), such that upon, orsubsequent to, manually unlatching the one or more latches the actuatoris actuated to effect automatic movement of the desired one or morestroller components from a first position to a second position. That is,a control switch such as a position sensing switch 206 (which may be anoptical switch, electrical contact switch, or any other type of switch)may be provided which is operatively engaged with a controller whichcontrols the actuation of the drive mechanism as desired (which may bein any of a wide variety of rates, sequences, options, etc.) The controlswitch or switches may be located and configured to be triggered oractuated during conventional manual unlatching of the latch or latches,or may be at a convenient location on the stroller which allows thecontrol switch to be easily actuated while, or immediately subsequentto, unlatching of the latch or latches. It may be desirable to providean arrangement in which two or more control switches associated withrespective latches are required to both be actuated to effect automaticmovement of the desired one or more stroller components from a firstposition to a second position.

A single control switch may actuate a single controller, such as amicroprocessor 208, which in turn actuates two or more separate drivemechanisms. Alternatively, a single control switch may actuate two ormore controllers which each in turn actuate one or more separate drivemechanisms.

The stroller 10 may also have a display 96, such as on the handle bar56, to provide information to the user as to any of a wide variety ofinformation such as confirmation that the front and rear wheel supportstructures are secured in their fully open positions, that latches arelocked, that a brake is engaged, ambient temperature, distance traveled,time, or the like.

With reference now to FIGS. 17-20, a stroller 100 embodying variousaspects of the present invention is illustrated. The stroller 100 ismovable or foldable between a collapsed position (see FIG. 20) and anopen or operative position (see FIGS. 17 and 18). An intermediatestroller position between collapsed and open is illustrated in FIG. 19.

The stroller 100 has a front wheel support structure 104 having a pairof laterally spaced front support legs 110 with front wheels 108rotatably mounted thereon. The stroller 100 also has a rear wheelsupport structure 106 having a pair of laterally spaced rear supportlegs 112 with rear wheels 114 rotatably mounted thereon. The upper endsof the respective front support legs 100 and rear support legs 112 arepivotally connected to one another which allows the front and rearwheels 108 and 114 to pivot toward and away from one another.

As best seen in FIGS. 17 and 19, the stroller 100 also has a handlebar116 with a pair of laterally spaced legs 118, which legs 118 arepivotally connected at their ends 118 a to respective sides of the rearend 120 a of a seat member 120 to allow pivotal movement between theseat member 120 and handlebar legs 118. The seat member 120 is alsopivotally connected near its front end 120 b to the front support legs110 to allow pivotal movement between the seat member 120 and the frontsupport legs 110. The stroller 100 has a pair of arms 122 (see FIG. 17)which are each pivotally connected at one of their ends to the handlebarlegs 116 and pivotally connected to the rear support legs 112. A link123 is provided extending between and pivotally connected to the lowerend 118 a of the handlebar and the rear support leg 112. Accordingly,the front support legs 110, rear support legs 112, seat member 120, arms122, links 123 and handlebar 116 define a linkage having a single degreeof freedom, such that each of these components move simultaneouslybetween their collapsed and open position, and such that prevention ofmotion of various components relative to each other prevents movement ofthe stroller between its collapsed and open positions. The link 123facilitates the linkage mechanism of the stroller 100 as having a singledegree of freedom, with left and right sides coupled together by crossbraces. A locking mechanism or latch may be provided which, when movedto its locking or latched position, allows locking of the stroller 100in its open position during use.

In accordance with an aspect of the invention, a drive motor ormechanism 124 is operatively coupled to both the seat member 120 andfront support legs 110 at their pivot axis such that, when actuated, themotor 124 pivots the seat member 120 relative to the front support legs110 (as seen in comparing FIGS. 18 through 20). Because the linkagemechanism of the stroller 100 has a single degree of freedom, thepivoting of the seat 120 relative to the front support legs 110 by themotor 124 effects movement of each of the front support legs 110, rearsupport legs 112, seat member 120, arms 122 and handlebar 116 betweentheir open and collapsed positions. The illustrated stroller 100 has themotor 124 placed at the pivot axis between the seat 120 and frontsupport member 110 with the shaft of the motor 124 coaxial with thepivot axis between the seat 120 and front support legs 110 in a directdrive system, with the motor 124 mounted to the front support leg 110and the motor shaft connected to the seat member 120. However, it maydesirable to have the motor 124 mounted at a different location on thestroller 100 such as under the seat 120 using an indirect drive systemin which the motor is not located at the pivot axis, but is mounted tothe front support member 110 and the motor shaft is operativelyconnected to the seat member 120.

Although the illustrated stroller 100 has the motor controlling pivotingmovement of the front support leg 110 relative to the seat member 120,one or more motors may be placed at any one or more pivot axes of thelinkage to pivot any two pivotally connected members of the singledegree of freedom linkage, whereby due to the single degree of freedomof the linkage the one or more motors may control movement of thestroller between its open and collapsed positions. Also, in accordancewith a further aspect of the invention, one or more motors or otherdrives may be provided a suitable location away from the strollercomponent or components which are desired to be moved, with a suitableoperative connection extending between the one or more drives and thestroller component or components to be moved by the drive. Also, inaccordance with another aspect of the present invention, a stroller maybe provided in which separate drive mechanisms move different componentsof the stroller which are not interconnected as a single degree offreedom linkage, or one drive mechanism may drive and effect movement ofa plurality of different components of the stroller which are notinterconnected, or one drive mechanism may drive a plurality ofdifferent components of the stroller which are interconnected as asingle degree of freedom linkage with another drive mechanism drivingone or more additional components of the stroller.

In accordance with another aspect of the invention, a stroller may beprovided in which a drive mechanism is operatively connected with anyone or more stroller components to move the one or more strollercomponents between any first desired position and any second desiredposition. Such stroller components may be wheel support structures,handlebars, cup holders, canopies, or any other stroller component forwhich it is desired to easily and automatically move from a firstposition to a second position. Such movement may be to achievecompactness in a first position and operational use in a secondposition, but the invention is not limited to this and there is avirtually limitless number of potential advantageous strollerembodiments in which it may be desirable to facilitate easy movement ofone or more stroller components between first position and one or moreother positions.

A stroller may be provided in which a drive mechanism is operativelyconnected with one or more components which are not related to movingthe front or rear wheels, or left and right wheels, between open andcollapsed positions. As an example, additional stroller components suchas visors, cup holders, etc. may have a drive mechanism operativelyconnected therewith to move them between a first desired position andone or more other desired positions, which movement may be carried outin conjunction with the opening and collapsing movement of the strollerand/or independently. Accordingly, by merely actuating a readilyaccessible control switch which is operatively connected to a drivemechanism of the stroller (which operative connection may be direct orthrough a controller), one or more stroller components operativelyconnected to the drive mechanism (which operative connection may bedirect or indirect) may be easily moved from a first desired position toa second desired position.

With reference to FIGS. 21-23, the stroller 100 may be provided with oneor more latches or locking mechanisms (such as in FIG. 21 or any otherlatches or locking mechanisms) which are moveable between a latched orlocked position in which the stroller is prevented from moving out ofits open position, and an unlatched or unlocked position in which thestroller is allowed to move freely out of its open position toward itscollapsed position. With reference to FIGS. 22 and 23, the latches canbe controlled by a small latch release motor 125 disposed in thehandlebar 116, a cup holder or the like extending across the handlebar,or another suitable location on the stroller 100, with the shaft of thelatch release motor 125 operatively engaged with latch release cables126 which extend to the latch or locking release mechanisms on eitherside of the stroller. Upon actuation of the latch release motor, thelatch release cables 126 are pulled to release the latch or latches.Separate or, preferably linked, cables 126 a also extend to thehandlebar 116 to a manual latch cable pulling mechanism 127 (see FIGS.18-20) to allow manual unlatching of the latches, particularly in theevent of failure or obstruction of the latch release motor 125. Thelatch release cables preferably also extend and reside with thecomponents of the stroller and are not exposed or visible.

In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the stroller may bedesigned so that the releasing of the latches is synchronized with themovement of one or more other components of the stroller to theircollapsed positions. This may be done through mechanical linkages or thelike, through a suitable controller, both, or in other ways.

A resistance sensing device and/or timer may be operatively connected tothe controller to stop movement and/or move toward the unfolded or openposition when folding is interrupted, e.g. when too much resistancetoward folding movement is encountered or when fully closed position isnot achieved within a predetermined time. Alternatively, oradditionally, a clutch may be provided between the motor and theelements to which it is connected to provide slippage of the drivingforce of the motor if too much resistance is encountered.

In accordance with another aspect of the invention, a manual overridemay be provided to allow manual movement of the stroller between itsopen and closed positions and/or manual movement of any strollercomponents between their first and second positions which would normallybe carried out automatically by a drive mechanism. Such manual overridemay be desirable for any of a number of reasons, such as the powersource being too low to effect the desired automatic movement or thefailure of any parts. A wide variety of manual override mechanism may beutilized in connection with the present invention. For instance, aclutch or clutches may be provided between one or more drive mechanismelements and their associated stroller components for use as a manualoverride, whereby the clutch may be moved to a position in which iteffects disengagement of the drive mechanism. As another example, amechanical lever or rotary element may be provided at any point in thedrive mechanism and/or between the drive mechanism and one or morestroller components associated with the drive mechanism, which ismovable between an automatic position (in which a drive mechanism isoperatively engaged with one or more stroller components to move the oneor more stroller components automatically) and a manual position (inwhich a drive mechanism is disengaged from its operative engagement withone or more stroller components). For instance, with reference to thedrive mechanism 70 of the stroller 10, a disengaging mechanism 83, suchas a rotary disengaging element, may be provided which is movable froman automatic position in which the disengaging mechanism 83 allowsand/or maintains the operative engagement between the mounting portion82 a of rear nut member 82 (which extends outwardly of the guide rail 16through the longitudinally extending slot 84 in the guide rail 16) andthe rear collar 34 which is mounted to the mounting portion 82 a of therear nut member 82 such that the rear collar 34 and the rear membersecuring portion 46 connected thereto moves longitudinally along theguide rail 16 together with the rear nut member 82 as the rear threadedmember 72 is rotated—and a manual position in which the disengagingmechanism 83 disengages the mounting portion 82 a of rear nut member 82(which extends outwardly of the guide rail 16 through the longitudinallyextending slot 84 in the guide rail 16) from the mounting portion 82 aof the rear nut member 82 such that the rear collar 34 and the rearmember securing portion 46 connected thereto may be moved manually,longitudinally along the guide rail 16 disengaged from the threadedmember. Accordingly, when the disengaging mechanism 83 is moved to itsmanual position, the rear collar may slide freely along the guide rail16 by manual movement. The same, similar, or other disengaging mechanismmay be provided for the front collar to allow the front collar to slidefreely along the guide rail when its associated disengaging mechanism ismoved to its manual position.

When in its manual position, the disengaging mechanism may engage one ormore locking mechanisms when the stroller is moved to its open positionand/or closed position to retain the stroller in its open positionand/or closed position, such as to prevent the collars from sliding awayfrom their open positions during use and/or away from their closedpositions during transport or storage, with the disengaging mechanismbeing configured such that it does not engage the locking mechanism(s)when in its automatic position (in which the drive mechanism may preventmovement of the stroller away from its open position during use and/orprevent movement of the stroller toward its open position duringtransport or storage. The locking mechanism(s) may be manually released.

It will be appreciated that the above is merely by way of example, andthat a wide variety of disengaging mechanisms may be utilized with awide variety of different stroller designs, without departing from theinventive concepts of the present invention.

The movement or movements of the inventive strollers of the presentinvention can be carried out in a wide variety of ways, such astelescoping of components, sliding of components, pivoting ofcomponents, rectilinear movement of components, cam driven or guidedmovement of components, or any other known linkage which allows movementof two or more components relative to one another.

In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, virtually anystroller construction which has one or more front wheels and one or morerear wheels, or having any other wheel configuration such as a circulararrangement of the wheels, left and right wheels, or any otherarrangement, in which the stroller has some type of drive for moving atleast one of the wheels from a first position to a second position maybe constructed. In accordance with another aspect of the invention,virtually any stroller construction can be utilized which allowsautomatic movement of at least one its wheels from an open position to acollapsed position, or back and forth between collapsed and openpositions, or between an extended position and a retracted position. Inaccordance with another aspect of the invention, a stroller may beprovided having a frame with one or more components, which may be wheelcomponents and/or other stroller components or attachments (orcomponents to which attachments may be connected) with a driveoperatively connected with the one or more components to move them froma first position to a second position. This may be used for automaticmovement of the components between any desired first and secondpositions. In accordance with another aspect of the invention, one ormore stroller components or attachments may be moved between three ormore selective positions by the drive mechanism and/or control switches,and or one or more controllers.

In accordance with an aspect of the invention, a controller may be usedto control the drive. The controller may actuate the drive mechanism(s)for a predetermined period of time to move the stroller between itsfully open and fully collapsed positions, and/or sensor(s) may be usedto limit the actuation of the drive mechanism(s) when the component(s)reach and/or approach their fully open and/or fully collapsed positions.The controller and drive may be constructed to allow the drive to moveor operate at different speeds or rate of movement over differentportions of its movement, which (depending on the stroller constructionand operative engagement of the drive with the stroller components) mayallow the stroller components to be moved at a constant or approximatelyconstant speed, or may allow the stroller components to be moved atdifferent speeds over different portions of their movement. By way ofexample, it may be desirable to have one or more stroller componentsmove quickly during their initial movement(s) and more slowly duringtheir final movement(s), or vice-versa.

In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, a strollermay be provided having latch or locking components operatively connectedwith the drive mechanism, or a separate drive mechanism, which latchesare moveable between a locking position which maintains the stroller inits collapsed position and an unlocked position which allows thestroller to move from its collapsed position to it open position.

Backup mechanical systems may be provided to serve as the drive formoving the wheels and/or other stroller components. A mechanicalsystem(s) may use elements common with the automatic system(s), useindependent element(s), or both.

As used herein, movement of the stroller between its collapsed and openpositions refers to movement of one or more of the stroller componentsbetween their collapsed and open positions, and vice-versa.

As used herein, the terms drive and drive mechanism may refer simply toa motor or may refer to a more complex drive system which may be a motorand other components or any other device capable of moving itself and/orother elements. However, the invention is not limited to drives or drivemechanisms having a motor. For instance, but not by way of limitation,the drive or drive mechanism may be a hydraulic or pneumatic drive, withhydraulic or pneumatic tubes extending from a hydraulic or pneumaticpump, internally and/or externally of one or more stroller components,to desired locations of the stroller to effect movement of one or morestroller components. Cables, running internally and/or externally of oneor more stroller components, may be utilized. Suitable accommodation forthe cables, pneumatic tubing, hydraulic tubing and/or electrical wiresis preferably provided to prevent pinching, folding or other deformationwhich would prevent suitable or optimal operation of these elements. Anenergy storing drive or drive mechanism (such as one utilizing a springloaded element, other resilient element or electromagnetic storageelement, which stores energy when one or more stroller components aremoved from one position to another for subsequent release of part or allof the stored energy to effect movement of the same or other strollercomponents, may be utilized. Rotary drives and/or drive mechanisms, ornon-rotary drives and/or drive mechanisms may be utilized. One type ofdrive or drive mechanism may be utilized, or any combination of two ormore drive mechanisms may be utilized either in combination with oneanother or individually.

In accordance with an aspect of the invention, the drive or drivemechanism may be located at, or in proximity with, a location (orlocations) on the stroller at which one or more stroller components aredesired to be moved, or the drive or drive mechanism(s) may be locatedremote from such location or locations, with suitable operativeengagement extending between a remotely located drive or drive mechanismand the location or locations on the stroller at which one or morestroller components are desired to be moved. Such operative engagementmay include for instance cables, hydraulic tubes, pneumatic tubes,electromagnetic forces, electric wires, or any of a wide variety ofother engagements.

In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, thecontroller used to control the motor to control the collapsing andopening movements, or other desired stroller component movements, of thestrollers of the present invention may be constructed and configured tohave two or more discrete switches (not shown) which need to be actuatedsimultaneously, or in a predetermined sequence or pattern, to effectactuation of the motor and thereby the movable components of thestroller, so as to prevent inadvertent movement of the strollercomponents, such as inadvertent movement of a stroller toward itsdeployed and/or collapsed positions. The two or more discrete switchesare preferably spaced sufficiently apart from one another, or otherwisedisposed relative to one another, so as to prevent inadvertent actuationof one switch upon actuation of the other switch.

The control switch or switches may be constructed to require that oneswitch, or a combination of switches, be engaged throughout the movementof the desired stroller components, such as during opening and/orfolding operations of strollers designed for automatic opening andclosing. Alternatively, a suitable control switch or switches, and/orsuitable controller, may be provided such that only one actuation of aswitch or switches is required to effect the desired movement of two ormore stroller components, such as full movement of a stroller betweenits fully-deployed or open and/or fully-collapsed or folded positions.As a further alternative, a controller may be provided to move thestroller to a position intermediate its fully open and/or fullycollapsed position, such as a midway condition, with one actuation of aswitch or switches, and further or complete movement of the stroller toits fully deployed and/or fully collapsed positions requiring asubsequent actuation of a switch or switches.

The controller may be constructed to automatically switch directionswith each successive actuation. For example, should the movement of thestroller toward the fully-collapsed position be stopped at anintermediate point, such as upon a user noticing a toy in the strollerwhich is to be removed, but which has been enclosed by thepartially-collapsed stroller, the user need only release the switch orswitches and reengage them for movement in the opposite direction,toward the fully open position. The motor may then be stopped andre-actuated for movement of the stroller to its fully collapsedposition.

The control switch and/or controller may be mounted on the frame of thestroller, such as on the rear wheel support member or elsewhere on thestroller, or alternatively, the control switch and/or controller may beseparate from the stroller, such as on a key fob or other portabledevice, and operated using wireless technology. This may facilitate theability of a user to hold a child or baby with both hands throughout theopening and/or collapsing of the stroller.

The controller may be configured and constructed utilizing any of a widevariety of known controller designs and/or mechanisms. For instance, thecontroller may utilize electrical contact switches and/or may utilize aprocessor, microprocessor or microcontroller.

The controller may operate in conjunction with one or more sensors, suchthat upon actuation, or lack of actuation, of one or more sensors themotor does not operate even when the one or more switches, or othercontrol actuation mechanism, which would normally actuate the motor, areproperly actuated.

The controller may also be provided with switches or other actuators forcontrolling additional items such as a timer, an alarm clock feature, amusic device, a monitor, or any other desirable items. If desired, ageneral auxiliary device connector may be provided through which variousauxiliary devices may be interchangeably connected and controlled by thecontroller and/or suitable control switch, which devices may be poweredby the power source for the stroller, or through an independent powersource.

In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the movement of oneor more front wheel support structures, one or more rear wheel supportstructures, and one or more latches may be carried out in apredetermined sequence. This predetermined sequence may be that the oneor more latches are moved to their unlatched positions prior to themovement of the other members such as the front and rear wheel supportstructures, or the predetermined sequence may be that the latches aremoved to their unlatched positions simultaneous with the movement of oneor more components of the stroller toward their open positions, or anyother sequence suitable for the particular stroller design and result tobe achieved. A latch may also be provided to move to its locked positionto keep the stroller in its collapsed position, which may be part of thepredetermined sequence or a separate operation.

In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the power source fordriving the motor may be a replaceable and/or rechargeable battery orbatteries, conventional battery or batteries, and/or a direct electricalsupply such as that available from an electrical outlet. The powersource may be permanently attached to the stroller, or may be removablefor charging, replacement, or the like. To keep the overall strollerrelatively low in weight and/or to keep production costs down, or forother reasons, a relatively small power source may be utilized which hassufficient power to move the stroller back and forth between itsdeployed and collapsed positions, but which does not have sufficientadditional power to regularly or routinely power additional accessoriesor onboard systems without draining its power undesirably quickly.Alternatively, a larger power source may be utilized which not only hassufficient power to move the stroller back and forth between its openand collapsed conditions, but also has additional capacity to drive oneor more additional accessories and/or onboard systems, which accessoriesand/or onboard systems may be integral with the stroller or may bemodular additions or connections to the stroller. In accordance with anaspect of the invention, the stroller may be constructed and configuredto recharge, or maintain a predetermined power level of, its onboardpower source through a generator which is driven by the turning of thestroller wheels.

In accordance with another aspect of the invention, a display may beutilized in conjunction with the stroller, which display or a portionthereof may be mounted onboard the stroller or be remote, to providevisual and/or audio feedback to the user about any desired feature orparameter, such as the position of the stroller frame, the presence ofan object in the stroller, whether the stroller will move toward itsopen or collapsed condition when next actuated, the presence of a babyor child in the stroller, instructions for use and operation of thestroller, emergency telephone numbers, environmental conditions in whichthe stroller is being used, or any other desired feature or parameter.

In accordance with yet another aspect of the invention, one or moreobject sensors 200 (see FIG. 17) may be utilized in conjunction with thestroller, with the object sensor or sensors 200 having the ability todetect the presence of objects within the interior portion of thestroller and to interrupt and/or prevent movement of the stroller in thedirection toward its collapsed condition when the object sensor 200detects the presence of an object within the interior portion of thestroller. The object sensor or sensors 200 may be of any known type, orany type later developed, such as a mechanical weight sensor, aproximity sensor, a motion sensor, a light beam sensor, or any otherdevice having the ability to detect the presence of an object within theinterior of the stroller. The sensor or sensors 200 may be electronicand may send a signal which is electrically acted upon to prevent orinterrupt power to the motor, and/or the sensors may be mechanical andactuate a physical lock or a brake to prevent further collapsing or thefull collapsing movement of the stroller.

Sensors may also be used to detect the presence of modular add-ondevices connected to the stroller, such that movement of the stroller toits collapsed condition is prevented when a connected add-on isdetected, thereby preventing potential damage to the add-on device.

In accordance with still another aspect of the invention, positionsensors 204 (see FIG. 17) may be utilized at selective locations on theframe to send a signal indicative of the positions of one or morecomponents or elements of the stroller. The position sensors 204 can beused for several purposes, such as sending a signal to a display toprovide a visual and/or audio indication to the user as to the currentposition or of the deployment or the collapsing of the stroller and/orto provide an interrupting signal (or non-signal) if a position sensoror sensors 204 are not engaged as they would be during proper deploymentand/or collapsing of the stroller. Any one or more of several knowntypes of sensors may be utilized, such as rotary encoders at any one ormore frame component pivot points, and/or limit or contact switcheswhich are engaged as selective elements of the stroller move to theirproper positions, or improper positions, during deployment and/orcollapsing of the stroller. By way of example, positions sensors 204 maybe mounted to the stroller at positions which provide indication thatthe stroller has moved to its fully deployed condition, it's fullycollapsed condition, or any condition in-between; and/or positionsensors 204 may be mounted at locations to detect the engagement or lackof engagement of latches. Position sensors 204 may operate inconjunction with electronic timer controls such that a signal to effectstoppage of power to the motor is sent if the position sensor 204 is notengaged within a predetermined time period.

If a motor is used as the drive mechanism, the motor may be of areversible type, or alternatively, a single-direction motor withmechanical reversing means.

In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, a strollermay be provided in which the front and/or rear wheels move front to backand/or back to front and/or side to side and/or top to bottom and/orbottom to top. This may apply to other stroller components as well. Forinstance, a stroller may be provided in which the wheels of the strollerremain on the ground or otherwise relatively stationary, while otherstroller components move forwardly and/or rearwardly and/or sidewaysand/or upwardly and/or downwardly between collapsed and open positions.

The stroller embodiments described in detail above, are simple, robust,easy to use, and relatively inexpensive. The various structures of theapparatus may all be made of any suitable plastics or formed of metals.

From the foregoing, it can be seen that there has been provided featuresfor an improved stroller. While particular embodiments of the presentinvention have been shown and described in detail, it will be obvious tothose skilled in the art that changes and modifications may be madewithout departing from the invention in its broader aspects. Therefore,the aim is to cover all such changes and modifications as fall withinthe true spirit and scope of the invention. The matters set forth in theforegoing description and accompanying drawings are offered by way ofillustrations only and not as limitations. The actual scope of theinvention is to be defined by the subsequent claims when viewed in theirproper perspective based on the prior art.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A stroller, comprising: a first strollercomponent; a second stroller component: at least one of the first andsecond stroller components being movable from a first position to asecond position; a drive mechanism operatively engaged with the at leastone of the first and second stroller components to move the at least oneof the first and second stroller components from its first position toits second position; a user-controlled disengaging mechanism fordisengaging the operative engagement between the drive mechanism and theat least one of the first and second stroller components to allow a userto manually move at least one of the first and second strollercomponents from the first position to the second position when at leastone of a) power supplied to the drive mechanism is not sufficient toactuate the drive mechanism to move at least one of the first and secondstroller components from its first position to its second position andb) a failure with at least one of the first stroller component, thesecond stroller component, and the drive mechanism has occurred; one ormore latches in operative engagement with at least one of the firststroller component and the second stroller component, which one or morelatches are moveable by one or more latch drive mechanisms operativelyconnected thereto between a latched position in which the one or morelatches prevent movement of at least one of the first stroller componentand the second stroller component toward their second positions, and anunlatched position in which the one or more latches allow movement of atleast one of the first stroller component and the second strollercomponent toward their second positions; and a manual latch releasemechanism operatively connected to the one or more latches to allowmanual movement of the one or more latches from the latched position tothe unlatched position when at least one of failure of the latch drivemechanism and obstruction of the latch drive mechanism has occurred. 2.The stroller in accordance with claim 1, wherein the first position isan open position and the second position is a collapsed position.
 3. Thestroller in accordance with claim 1, further comprising a frame coupledto at least one of the first stroller component and the second strollercomponent.
 4. The stroller in accordance with claim 3, furthercomprising an object sensor configured to detect the presence of objectswithin an interior portion of the frame and send a signal to preventactuation of the drive mechanism if an object is detected in theinterior portion of the frame.
 5. The stroller in accordance with claim3, further comprising at least one position sensor provided at aselective location on the frame to provide a signal indicative of thepositions of at least one of the first stroller component and the secondstroller component.
 6. The stroller in accordance with claim 5, whereinthe at least one position sensor sends the signal to a display toprovide at least one of a visual indication and an audio indication to auser as to a current position of at least one of the first strollercomponent and the second stroller component.
 7. The stroller inaccordance with claim 1, further comprising one or more latch positionsensors which detect when the one or more latches are in their latchedpositions, with the one or more latch position sensors sending a signalto stop actuation of the one or more latch drive mechanisms upon receiptof the signal.
 8. The stroller in accordance with claim 1, furthercomprising a display and one or more latch position sensors which detectwhen the one or more latches are in their latched positions, with theone or more latch position sensors sending a signal to the display whenthe one or more latches are in their latched positions, with the displayproviding visual confirmation to the user that the one or more latchesare in their latched positions.
 9. A stroller, comprising: a collapsiblecarriage frame movable between a collapsed position and an openposition; a drive mechanism operatively engaged with the collapsiblecarriage frame to move the collapsible carriage frame from the collapsedposition to the open position; and a user-controlled disengagingmechanism for disengaging the operative engagement between the drivemechanism and the collapsible carriage frame to allow a user to manuallymove the collapsible carriage frame from the open position to thecollapsed position when at least one of a) power supplied to the drivemechanism is not sufficient to actuate the drive mechanism to move thecollapsible carriage frame from the open position to the collapsedposition and b) a failure with at least one of the collapsible carriageframe and the drive mechanism has occurred; one or more latches inoperative engagement with the support structure, the one or more latchesmoveable between a latched position and an unlatched position by atleast one latch drive mechanism; and a manual latch release mechanismoperatively connected to the one or more latches to allow manualmovement of the one or more latches from the latched position to theunlatched position when at least one of failure of the latch drivemechanism and obstruction of the latch drive mechanism has occurred. 10.The stroller in accordance with claim 9, wherein the collapsiblecarriage frame includes an interior portion.
 11. The stroller inaccordance with claim 10, further comprising an object sensor configuredto detect the presence of objects within the interior portion of thecollapsible carriage frame and send a signal to prevent actuation of thedrive mechanism if an object is detected in the interior portion of thecollapsible carriage frame.
 12. The stroller in accordance with claim11, wherein the object sensor sends a signal to a display to provide avisual indication to a user if an object is present in the interiorportion.
 13. The stroller in accordance with claim 9, further comprisingat least one position sensor provided at a selective location on thecollapsible carriage frame to send a signal indicative of the positionsof at least one of the collapsible carriage frame to a control system.14. The stroller in accordance with claim 13, wherein the at least oneposition sensor sends the signal to a display to provide at least one ofa visual indication and an audio indication to a user as to a currentposition of the collapsible carriage frame.
 15. The stroller inaccordance with claim 9, further comprising one or more latch positionsensors which detect when the one or more latches are in their latchedpositions, with the one or more latch position sensors sending a signalto stop actuation of the one or more latch drive mechanisms upon receiptof the signal.
 16. The stroller in accordance with claim 9, furthercomprising a display and one or more latch position sensors which detectwhen the one or more latches are in their latched positions, with theone or more latch position sensors sending a signal to the display whenthe one or more latches are in their latched positions, with the displayproviding visual confirmation to the user that the one or more latchesare in their latched positions.